" It's a miracle !
» President of SOS Tracker 07, an association of firefighters, Patrice Lieutier cannot believe his eyes.
The Tracker he has been coveting for six years finally arrived this week at Aubenas aerodrome after forty-eight hours on the road.
“Its delivery was complicated,” confides the firefighter.
Departing from the Nîmes civil security air base, the aircraft had to be dismantled (especially the wings) to be transported to Ardèche.
And it was the SOS Tracker 07 volunteers who got their hands dirty: “It was a lot of stress because we are firefighters, not aeronautical mechanics!
Fortunately, we found valuable help on site,” says Patrice Lieutier.
The firefighters spent eight days in the base's hangars dismantling the Tracker.
A perilous convoy
The journey to the Aubenas aerodrome - which cost 40,000 euros - was just as perilous and stressful for Patrice Lieutier: "It's very complicated to take narrow roads with a plane which, even without its wings, is 8.20 m wide.
»
Now arrived safely, the aircraft which served the United States during the Cold War (
it was used to fly over the Atlantic and monitor Soviet enemy submarines during the
Cuban crisis
) before 'being sent to France as a bomber
of water and reformed in 2000, will be able to be reassembled.
Read also Enthusiasts want to save the Grumman TO1 Tracker, a symbol of firefighting aircraft
“We have a great project for him,” announces the president of SOS Tracker 07. In conjunction with the Departmental Equipment and Development Union, owner of the aerodrome, and the departmental council, the association of Patrice Lieutier wishes to create a cultural, educational and memorial space around the Tracker: “We want to make the history of this plane known through documents, photos, testimonies, but also to raise awareness about forest fires.
And why not encourage vocations?
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